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Showing posts with label carpal tunnel. Show all posts
Showing posts with label carpal tunnel. Show all posts

Thursday, February 4, 2016

https://kimmiecakeskickslyme.wordpress.com/2013/09/23/lyme-and-aca-the-herx-rash/


I have this condition called ACA right now on my upper stomach, low back, and around some of my feet after taking a bout of Clindamycin for a sinus infection not too long ago. It was the first bit of antibiotics since I moved to Georgia in January of 2015, and I now know that, due to a myriad of arising symptoms, I am not cured and do need to pursue further treatment. I see an infectious Disease Dr down here for the first time next week, after being demanded to see one by my GYN Dr. who is very sympathetic to all I have been through since I was 8 years old. She believes I have Endometriosis as a result from my Lyme disease, and I will be undergoing exploratory surgery in December to clean that up and get a definitive diagnosis. She also believes that my carpal tunnel, back arthritis, IBS, and much more is involved around the chronic disease since I stopped treatment in December 2014. This is the first time I have discussed this to my Facebook friends in over a year, and also a real wake up call that I am not out of the woods yet. I try to keep updates on my Facebook as I know many people suffering find comfort in reading others' stories.

Wednesday, December 30, 2015

Carpal Tunnel/ Cubital Tunnel Release Surgery

As you may know from previous posts, I have suffered my entire life with overactive sweat glands on the back of my left hand. It has taken me over 10 years, 5 dermatologists, moving 1200 miles from home, completely new physicians and opinions, to finally discover a possible cause for this. After seeing a Neurologist in Georgia and being put through a nerve Conduction study for the first time, I was diagnosed with severe cubital tunnel syndrome and moderate carpal tunnel syndrome on my left side. It is not on the right side which makes it slightly more convincing that it could be the cause of the sweating. I also experience tenderness, tingling, and numbness on and off on that side. I was scheduled for surgery before the end of the year. I had the surgery two weeks ago now. In case you are wondering, pre-op is very simple, much like any surgery. They gave me a light sedation before doing a nerve block on my left side which was excruciating but I was drowsy so it wasn't too bad. They did extra topical anesthetics on me because of my history of not responding well to pain medicine. I had them keep me on Toradol since I cannot handle any narcotics. The surgery went quick and I woke up with my limp arm in a sling to hold it up. my hand and elbow were wrapped up tight and I was out of there in no time. My recovery consisted on 3 days of pain and swelling before I realized I needed to elevate and ice my hand. Then when I got through that weekend I immediately started touching my fingers together and trying to use the hand little bits at a time. After a week I was doing really good, bandages off, showering myself, driving with one arm, starting to pick things up with the arm. After two weeks I am almost completely normal. The steri-strips are gone, no stitches just some glue, but I am using my hand completely and applying pressure to it like door knobs and the steering wheel. I am glad I went through with the procedure, however, I am not noticing any immediate results. The hand is still sweating, though it may be due to the irritation of the nerve as it heals. The numbness and tingling are worsened as the wrist and palm now ache off and on and get sore with movement. The elbow just hurts when pressure is on it. I have been told expect 5 weeks for complete healing and tenderness to go away. I have also been told it can take a year or two for nerves to fully recover when damage has been done so it may take awhile for me to know if this was a permanent fix or not. I do plan to keep everyone up to date as time goes on.